Apparatus for generating illuminating or heating gas



(No Model.)

W. P. PATTON APPARATUS POR GENERATING ILLUMINTING 0R HEATING GAS.

Patented July 10, 1883.'`

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)WILLIAM I. PATTON, OF HARRISBURG,A ASSIGNOR OF ONE-HALF TO C. F.ROBERTSON, OF PHILADELPHIA, PENNSYLVANIA.

APPARATUS FOR GENERATING ILLUMINATING OR HATlNG G'AS.

SPECIFICATION forming part of Letters Patent No. 281,127, dated July 10,1883,

. Application tiled May 1,1883. (No model.)

To all whom it may concern.-

Be it known that WILLIAM l?. PATTON, of the city of Harrisburg, count-yof Dauphin, and State of Pennsylvania, have invented a new and improvedgas apparatus for the rapid:

and economical generation of illuminating or heating gas fromhigh-pressure steam and carbonaceous liquids, preferably crude ben-vzine#7 and I hereby declare thev following to be a full, clear, andexact description of thev same, reference being made to the accompanyingmarked thereon.

In the dra-wings, Figure l represents a sidev elevation of thegenerator. Fig. 2 is a view of the gasgenerator in vertical section,takenv through the center of the furnace from front a sectional view ofthe steam-superheating de vice that is also shown in Fig. 2. Fig. 7 is atop or plan view oi' the snperheating device illustrated in Fig. 6.Figs. 8 and 9 are sectional and top views of the same portion of thegas-generator, which will be fully explained in the followingspec-iiication.

In all the figures like letters designate like parts of the generator.

The shell or body A of the generator is made of boiler-plate iron of asuicient thickness. It is a vertical cylindrical chamber, is rivetedtogether, and has its seams calked to make gas-tight joints. Aplate-iron bottom is rigidly secured in. place,as shown in Fig..1. Theangle-iron ring or iia-nge 71,-71 is attached to the upper end of theyshell A, as shown. It is made preferably of east-iron, and has itshorizontal face made level.

The cap-plate G- G, that is placed upon the flange hl 11 is madeL ofcastiron, and Vhas its bearing-surface made true, so that a gas-tightjoint is obtained at its point of contact with the flange h 7e., itbeing securely bolted thereto. A circular oriiice or coal-stokng hole,(see Fig. 2,) is made in the cap-plate G G at a point central to theshell A. The part of the drawings and the letters of reference Fig. 5 isa4 plate G G surrounding this hole is raised slightly above the uppersurface of the same. The face of this projection is made true, so as toeect a gastight joint with the lid i, Figs. 2 and 4.

The cover i is made of a proper thickness to stand the action of heatwithout warping, and of a sufficient size to cover the projection uponwhich it lies. The lid t' is hinged at o, Figs. 2 and 4, so as to permitit to be readily opened and closed, its connection with the plate G Gbeing maintained. Then closed it is secured by the swing-bar c and screwf.. (See Fig. 2.)

The generator-shell A is lined up inside with ire-brick of a properthickness, the bottom being similarly protected. (See S S, Fig. 2.) At aproper height from the bottom a castiron chamber, 0, is placed, restingupon the lining-wall S S. It is circular in form, having its top andbottom parallel. lts diameter is smaller than the shell A, so as toenter same easily. I designate this chamber() as a miX- ing-retort. Itswalls are of proper thickness to sustain weight upon them, as thisdevice takes the place of grate-bars. A suflicient number of annularwalled oriiices 1 2 34 are made to perforate the upper and lower facesoi' the retort O. The cylindrical walls of these perforations preventaccess to the interior of retort O, and serve to conduct an air-blastthrough them from the sub-chamber or ash-pit m below the retort into theiire-bed above it. Figs. 2, 8, and 9 show the form of the retort 0.Through the lower lplate or bottoni of O a proper number of gas escapeholes, s s s, are made. These perforations allow superheated steam orcrude hydrocarbon gas that is introduced into or is generated in theinterior cavity of the retort, to be forced by accumulating pressuredownward into the ash-pit m, and consequently upward through theblast-holes l 2 3 The pipe J, that is made to communicate with theinside of the retort O, and also with the interiorof thesteam-superheating chamber I), is designed to convey the highly-heatedsteam from said chamber l? to the mixing-retort O. It is essential thatthe pipe J be properly j acketed or protected with a non-conductingcovering, so that the superlicated steam is not IOO lowered intemperature in passing through it. The steam-superheating chamber P islocated immediately below-the cap-plate G G, and is supported inposition by the lining-wall S S. It is made of cast-iron, and is annularin form, as shown in Fig. 7,which is a top view of same. The outsidediameter is of a size to permit its easy introduction into the interiorof the generator-shell A. (See Fig. 2.) It is made with an interiorcavity or steam-space, u u. The inner wall of chamber P is made conical,or converging regularly from the base to the upper edge of same, theupper aperture conforming in diameter to the size of the stoking-hole inthe cap-plate G G. (See Fig. 2.) A gas-outlet, k, is made in and throughthe side of the retort or chamber P, a neck or short flangedV pipe, D,being securely bolted or riveted upon the outside'of the generatorshellA in an axial line with the aperture k. (See Fig. 2.) A steam-pipe, L,for conveying high-pressure steam from a steam-boiler to the chamber P,is connected therewith, as shown in Fig. 2, a valve, o, being placed ina convenient position for access tosame.

The pipe N, Fig. 2, is designed to convey crude benzine or oil from anelevated supplytank (not shown) to the point of junction c of said pipewith the steam-pipe J. A checkvalve, a, and stop-valve b are introducedin pipeNat a point near the place of attachment c. In Fig. 5 an enlargedview of the connecting steam-pipe J is seen, the lower end being shownto exhibit the conical or contracting nozzle w. This is placed in thehorizontal part of pipe J, immediately in the rear of the benzine-supplypipe N.

In the side of the shell A, below the retort O, is rigidly attached theair-blast pipe F. This is connected with a rotary fan located at aconvenient point, and a stop gate or valve is placed in theconnecting-pipe, so that all O for a similar purpose.

communication can be cut off when so desired. The blast-pipe F projectsinto the ash-pit m, as seen in Fig. 2. Upon the opposite side the door Eis placed. This is secured by hinged joints to a stout cast-iron frame,F. (See Fig. l.) This frame is riveted fast to the shell A. Abail-clamp, Z, is pivoted tothis frame, so as to swing away from or beplaced in front of the door E, and thus permit the handled set-screw Zto bear against' the projection formed on the outside of the door E,securing it tightly against the true-faced joint on the frame F, itbeing important that the door be made gas-tight. A portion of the frameF projects above the upper face of the retort O, and thus gives accessto the fire-bed in` the generator to remove ashes and clinker. Said doorand frame also extend below the retort The cap-plate G G of thegenerator is extended in the rear ofthe shell A a sufficient distance toform a base or support for the draft-stack d.

ln Figs. l, 2, and 3 are shown views of the stack d and an adjustablebonnet, B. This bonnet is made somewhat larger in diameter than the lide', over which it stands, resting its lower end on the cap-plate G G, asseen in Figs. l and 2. The body ofthe hood or bonnet B is bent at anobtuse angle, and is rigidly attached to a' sleeve, C, that is placedupon the stack d. This is so proportioned in size to the stack as toallow it to fit neatly, and yet be moved in either alateral or verticaldirection with ease. The dotted lines in Fig. 3 show the relativeposition of the bonnet B when removed from direct connection with theinterior of the stack d. As will be noticed, a proper-sized opening, g,is made through the wall of the stack d, so that when the hood B and itssleeve C are in correct position, and the lidil opened by access to itthrough the hole in the bonnet B immediately over it, a direct passageis formed from the interior of the generator to the interior of thestack d. When the bonnet B-is raised so as to clear the lid i, and ismoved away from said lid, as shown in Fig. 3, the sleeve C covers theaperture in the stack d. The bonnet B is provided with an opening in itstop over the lid i. It is closed by a hinged lid, e, and catch 5. ltsuse has been just explained. The stack d, sleeve C, and bonnet B aremade of plate-iron of proper thickness to insure stability under theaction of heat. A handle, e', is placed upon each side of the bonnet Bto raise it. vA counterbalance-weight,f, chain c, and pulleys a a can bearranged to relieve a great portion of the weight, and thus aid theoperation of removal of said bonnet B. Another style of attachment ofthe bonnet to the stack is shown in Fig. 4, in which the bonnet B 1 ishinged, so as to be lifted up and retained in that position and giveaccess to the generator-lid fi when desired. The object to be attainedby these devices is to enable the gasmaker yto have free access to thestoking-hole x to readily introduce coal, and then by replacing thebonnet to bring the iire in the generator in direct connection with thestack d, so that a fan-blast and continuous draft through the iire maybe secured. The swinging away of the -bonnet B IIO is also necessary toallow the iireman to use a long metallic bar through the stoking-hole x,causing the same to penetrate downward through the bed of incandescentcoals, and particularlyalong the surface of the fire-brick lining-wall,in order to break off the clinker that slags onto the same. By the freeuse of said bar all the caked cinder may be broken up and taken outthrough the door E.

In using the generator to produce illuminating or heating gas, a fire ofanthracite coal is started in the chamber A upon the upper surface ofretort O, a fan-blast being introduced at F after the door E is closedand the lidi opened. It is evident that the mass of coals can soon bebrought to a cherry-red heat on the upper surface, this being the propercondition of the fire to effect free generation and fix the gasproperly. The retort P will esl-.127 3 be highlyheated'by theproductsfof coal combust-ion passing upward-through it into the bonnetB. The retort O will also bein a similareondition.Thevalveupontheblast-pipeli" must now be closed, as well as the lid i,the latterbeing secured by the clamp u and set-screw t. The valve thatis attached to the gas-outlet D must now be opened. (Said valve notshown.) The steam-valve o being adjusted to permit a free iiow of high-pressure steam into the superheating-chamber P, it will pass downthrough the pipe J and nozzle fw into the retort O. Iminediately afterthe steam is turned on, the valve b in the benzinesupply pipe N shouldVbe opened a proper distance to allow the requisite amount ofcarbonaceous liquid to flowthrough the check-valve ce and into the pipeJ at the point c. The superheated steam coming' into contact with thebenzine instantlyvaporizes it, and the joined vapors are thoroughlyblended and mixed together by forcible contact against the numerouspipes in the retort-cavity, so that partial dissociation of thesuperheated steam is effected by reason of' the intimate contact of itand carbonaceous vapor in the highly-heated retort. The oxygen of theintensely-heated steam, combining with corresponding atoms of carbon,produces carbonio oxide. Thev hydrogen thus liberated by thisdissociation and recomposition takes up the remaining volume of carbonvapor and coin- 'bines therewith, producing crudehydrocarbon gas. Thewhole volume of compound gas passes downward through the pipes ororifices s s s into the sub-chamber ,or ash-pit m, and the increasingpressure of rapid generation forces the same upward through theblastholes 12 8 4, Sac., into and through the firebed. The upwardpassage of the crude hydro- 40 carbon gas through the incandescent bedof coals perfects the recomposition of the constituent elements, andcompletely fixes the compound gas, which escapes through the outlet I),and 'is conveyed by a pipe to the gas washing and purifying apparatus.

In this generator the entire operation is conducted within the wall ofone vertical chamber A, and such devices as supplementary coaliires andsuperheating-chambers filled with refractory material for iixing thecompound gas y are dispensed with. My present improved gas-generator iscompact, simple, and easy to operate, and generates high candle-powerbefore been used in' other patented devices.

fixed gas in large volume and in an economical and cheap manner.

I do not desire to claim, broadly, the use of a vertical chamber for agas-generator; nor do I cla-im the use of a bed of incandescent coal foriixing the compound gas, for these have 6o Neither do I claim to bethefirst to generate illuminating or heating gas from superheated steam andoil or benzine, as these materials have been so utilized before; but

Wha-tI do claim as new', of my own invention, and desire to secure byLetters Patent of the United States, isy 1. The vertical generator-shellA, in combination with the annular/steam-superheating chamber P,connecting-pipe J, steam and hydrocarbon mixing retort O, andbenzine-supply pipe N, constru/cled and operating sub- `st-antially asis herein shown, and for the purpose set forth.

2. Thecombination oi the removable capplate G G,'lid fi, annularsteam-superheating chamber l?, connecting-pipe J, mixing-retort O,benzine-supply pipe N, and vertical gener- :ttor-shell A, the wholebeing constructed and operatic g substantially as shown, and for thepurpose set forth.

3. A vertical gas-generator constructed with a removable or adjustabletop plate, G G, that is made to project outward asufficient distancefrom the side of the shell A, so aste form a base for the support ofthedraft-stack d, in combination with the hood and sleeve and the'smoke-stack, as is herein shown, and for-the purpose specified.,

l 4. A vertical gas-generatorconstructedwith 9o a stack, d, adjustablebonnet B, extended capplateGGI, annular steam-superheating chamber P,connecting-pipe J, mixing-retort O, sup ply-pipe N, and shell A, thewhole being combined and operating as is herein set forth.

5. The retort O, having its faces perforated and provided with theannular walled orifices l 2 3 4, and gas-escape holes s s s, incombination with the ash-pit m below the retort and the fire-bed aboveit, all constructed to operlroo ate' as and for the purpose herein set`forth.

WM. r. rnrfrox. [1.. s]

lVtnesses:

S. W. FLEMING, En. M. Coornu.

